Sixers news: Dario Saric speaks about playing with Dragan Bender in EuroBasket for Croatia

Sixers center Dario Saric talked about what he thinks of their potential pairing with Dragan Bender, via Drazen Brajdic of Vecernij.hr.

With the NBA now in its offseason, a lot of players are having a chance to spend more time with their families, and even taking vacations. For international team members, they are taking part in tournaments in different continents, like in Europe, where a number of them are slated to compete.

The Croatian national team is one of them, which includes Dario Saric and Dragan Bender. It will be the first time the two are included in their seniors team, and the Philadelphia 76ers center talked about what he thinks of their potential pairing, via Drazen Brajdic of Vecernij.hr.

“It is true that we do not have an old school center like 10 years ago, but it’s a different basketball game, so in Bender and me, we have a variety of forwards”, said Saric. “I was allowed to have such kind of initiative always when I was younger and these are the details that give me added value. So it’s definitely an interesting option for me and Bender to be paired on the court. It takes time, the more we play together, the more we feel it”.

Saric debuted for the Sixers and impressed many with his performances throughout the season. When Joel Embiid was forced to miss games due to injury, he stepped up his game and gave his team a solid presence inside the paint. He averaged 12.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. More importantly, he has established himself as one of the most core players in Philly.

Bender on the other hand, played limited minutes in his first year with the Phoenix Suns. He only averaged 13.3 minutes per game and produced 3.4 points and 2.4 rebounds per game. However, he was able to showcase his true potential in different games with his ability to score in different ways, including making shots from beyond the arc, despite standing 7-foot-1.

It will be very interesting to see how they will co-exist on the court for their country’s national team. If they’ll be able to play at an elite level and show off their skills set that made them top prospects in the NBA, the Croatians could emerge as one of the favorites in the Eurobasket tournament and may even win it all.